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Last Saturday, Ethel Smyth was the subject of Building a Library as part of Radio 3's Record Review. The stand-out item was judged to be Retrospect Opera's (extremely accomplished) recent complete recording of The Boatswain's Mate, but no mention was made whatsoever of the 1994 Proms complete performance of The Wreckers conducted by Odaline de la Martinez, originally issued on the long-defunct Conifer label. This less-than-perfect, but eminently serviceable, recording of a seminal work in the history of British opera STILL languishes uncommercially available, which is an absolute scandal. It was also odd that there was no reference to the extremely-accomplished Serenade in D for orchestra (1890) which is the coupling on the excellent Chandos disc for the Double Concerto...

Ethel Smyth's The Boatswain's Mate is being broadcast in it's entirety this coming Thursday. Not being to wild about The Wreckers,I am going to tape this (for my own use) using Ye olde dolby cassette deck,just to check it out first. If I do like it that much I will buy the set. Having said that,I do appreciate it's place in British music history and the Overture is rather fun;particularly in Smyth's own recording. It does seem strange for them not to have mentioned the Prom performance. The Serenade and Double Concerto,you mention,are very fine works,in their Brahmsian way. I also see that Retrospect Opera are planning to record her Fête Galante.